Biden nominates US attorney for Florida Mar-a-Lago district
President Joe Biden has nominated a Miami litigator and longtime government lawyer to serve as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, the office currently involved in the search warrants at the Mar-a-Lago home of former President Donald Trump
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.President Joe Biden has nominated a Miami litigator and longtime government lawyer to serve as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, the office currently involved in the Justice Department's investigation of classified records at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
Markenzy Lapointe would replace Juan Antonio “Tony” Gonzalez, who has been a top prosecutor in Southern Florida involved in the investigation of the classified records and the debate over whether a judge should appoint a special master to review the documents taken by FBI in the search.
It was unclear why the Biden administration chose to announce the nomination for the position now, as the government's case winds its way through the court system. Gonzalez, who had previously served as a senior prosecutor in the office, had been appointed to the position by Attorney General Merrick Garland. He was never nominated for the position or confirmed by the Senate.
Gonzalez has served as a federal prosecutor in southern Florida since 1998 and served as the first assistant U.S. attorney and the acting U.S. attorney. He succeeded Ariana Fajardo Orshan, who had been nominated by Trump.
Lapointe will likely be in the spotlight for months to come. He is currently with Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, and before that he worked at Boies Schiller & Flexner. He worked in the Southern District of Florida as an assistant U.S. attorney from 2002 to 2006. The office will likely be in the spotlight for months to come.
Biden also formally nominated Roger Handberg to be the United States attorney for the Middle District of Florida, which is handling a federal investigation into Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz. Handberg was appointed by Garland and has been serving in the role since 2021.
The president also nominated McLain J. Schneider to the District of North Dakota. He was in private practice and served in the North Dakota state Senate from 2008 to 2016.
The White House said the lawyers were chosen for their devotion to enforcing the law, “their professionalism, their experience and credentials, their dedication to pursuing equal justice for all, and their commitment to the independence of the Department of Justice.”
___
More on Donald Trump-related investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump